| Historically, Baptists have placed great importance upon the independence of local congregations, an idea that quickly became one of the distinctive features of Baptist thought. Early in their history, Baptists also esteemed inter-church cooperation. As this new associationalism moved towards denominationalism, however, some nineteenth-century Baptists in America, including Landmark Baptists, expressed concern about perceived threats to the independence of Baptist churches. When early attempts to limit the power of associations and denominations failed to appease these concerns, Landmark Baptists, led by Benjamin Marcus Bogard (1868--1951), separated from the Southern Baptist Convention. Bogard taught that the only scriptural church was a Local, visible, independent Baptist church, and that no other organization had the authority to preach, baptize, administer the Lord's Supper, or send missionaries. With this ecclesiology at the core of his doctrinal system, Bogard concluded that preserving the independence of local congregations was vital to the survival of true Christian doctrine. This study explores how this conception of local church protectionism influenced Bogard's theology. Following a brief introduction to both historic Baptist beliefs about the authority of the local church and Bogard's ministry career and involvement in the larger Landmark Baptist movement, this study enters a detailed discussion of Bogard's ecclesiology, particularly focusing on how this ecclesiology influenced Bogard's beliefs about other Christian denominations, the ordinances, and the convention system. Believing that Baptist churches were the only scripturally authorized organizations, Bogard argued that other denominations were false churches that imperiled true Christian doctrine through their unscriptural polity and beliefs. Bogard's local church protectionism also led him to insist that only a local Baptist congregation had the scriptural authority to administer baptism or the Lord's Supper. Finally, Bogard's belief in the necessity of local church independence drove his opposition to Baptist conventions, which Bogard viewed as unscriptural organizations seeking to enslave Baptist churches to a denominational hierarchy. In all of these areas, local church protectionism shaped Bogard's thought and became the chief characteristic of Landmark Baptist theology in the twentieth century. |
